Chapter Three:

Stranded

By Riley

Dawson felt hopeful as he knocked at the door of the B&B. It was early, but he knew she'd be home and he had to chance waking her up in order to talk to her. He hoped some time apart would help clear the tension from—everything.

"Hey Bessie, is Joey here?"

"Um, yeah, she's here but she's still asleep."

"I figured she would be, but I really need to talk to her. Is there any way I could see her right now?" Dawson's face was eager as he awaited an answer.

Bessie smiled awkwardly at Dawson, then quickly checked behind her as if looking for someone. "Dawson, she hasn't been feeling well since she's been home. How about I have her call you when she feels better, okay?"

Dawson's face grew hot with anger, aware that Joey was really the one talking, not Bessie. He avoided her eyes and quietly seethed, "Thanks," as he left the porch and walked down the lawn back to his house.

Bessie walked quietly into Joey's room and sat on the end of her bed. She patted Joey's feet lightly, Joey stirring after only a minute. "Bessie?"

"Morning, Jo."

"What time is it?"

"It's still pretty early."

"Can I help you make breakfast? Are the guests awake?" Joey asked groggily.

"Not yet. How about you get up, and then over breakfast we'll discuss the real reason I'm lying to Dawson Leery for you." Joey groaned and fell back on the bed. Bessie stood and as she walked out of the room, she said, "I'll be waiting patiently in the kitchen."

She rolled her eyes, wanting to avoid their little "talk" at all costs. She had already made a fool of herself last night in front of…Pacey. Her mind was foggy as to the events of the night before. She thought she heard him leave, but she had no idea at what time. She sighed with gratitude as she thought of Pacey. He had listened good-naturedly as she babbled in self-pity. He had willingly held her close, refusing to leave her side until she had completely fallen asleep.  He was pretty amazing that way.

She suddenly remembered Bessie waiting for her in the kitchen and climbed out of her bed.

Jen didn't end up calling Joey until late afternoon, but her plans turned out to be more than expected. Jen's boyfriend, Charlie, showed up out of the blue in Capeside and he admittedly wanted to be paraded around town as Jen's man.  So, Jen and Joey's day turned into the dreaded night for all.

No matter how Joey tried to decline, Jen wouldn't hear it. Joey reluctantly gave in when Jen confirmed that Pacey would be going. Good, she thought, at least there's someone I can talk to.  Joey was forced into promising she would be at the local club at nine with Pacey.

Pacey showed up at the B&B in the truck of all trucks. Walking casually up to the front door, he found Joey looking—unexpectedly striking. She was wearing a dark, knee-length jean skirt with a snug white t-shirt, and a half smile weakly on her lips as she said, "I'm so glad you're here, Pace. I need you to get through this." No response.

"Um, Pacey?"

Embarrassed, he shook himself out of a daze and smiled encouragingly at her. "You'll be fine."

"That's what I keep telling myself." He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the truck. She suddenly stopped in mid-step.

"Oh, Pacey, no. Jen warned me, but—

Joey's sentence was cut off by her enormous burst of laughter. Pacey shook his head. "I know, I know. But let this be said: this truck can jump at least twenty cars at one time, so…take that into account."

It was Joey's turn, and she affectionately placed her hand in Pacey's as she tried to control her amusement. "This'll be fun." He readily helped her into the truck, and then drove into town.

Knocking on the door to Lily's room, Dawson opened it slightly to find Shannon applying the last touches of her make-up. "Hey," Shannon smiled and set her compact down to hug Dawson. He gently kissed her delicate lips. "Are you ready to go? They're going to be here any minute."

She smiled mischievously at him. "Let's just lock ourselves in this room instead. I'll make it worth your while." Dawson looked deep into her eyes. "I believe you." She kissed him more passionately as the doorbell interrupted their moment.

Dawson smiled apologetically, "Maybe next time." She smiled and kissed him once more before he ran downstairs and opened the door for Jack, Jen, and Charlie.

"Dawson, it's good to see you again."  Charlie walked ahead of Jack and Jen to shake Dawson's hand. "Nice place. Is this your parent's? Can I have a look around?"

"Sure."

"He certainly has no inhibitions," Jack commented with Jen shaking her head at her boyfriend and Dawson chuckling to himself.  Charlie was giving himself a tour of the house, as Shannon joined the rest of the group in the kitchen.

Nonchalantly, Dawson walked to Jen's side. He watched Jen for a second and asked, "So, is Joey coming? Did you talk to her?" Jen replied with reassurance, "Yes, Joey Potter is going to make an entrance. She agreed to come with Pacey, and we're meeting them there." Shannon watched as Dawson's face recovered with relief at the news. Dawson knew he should feel reassured. But, he couldn't help but think of Joey and Pacey—forget it. He was just thankful she was coming at all.

Jack raised his eyebrows, "Should we go or…?"

"Charlie, where are you?" Jen called. "Let's go." She went off in search of him and met the rest of the group in front of the house.

Charlie entertained them with his antics the entire ride to the bar, leaving no mystery to the relationship he shares with Jen. Dawson had met Charlie before and no matter how much time he spent with him, he never got over how different him and Jen really were. Of course, he thought, he could say the same about his relationship with Shannon.

They arrived to find Pacey's monster truck already in the parking lot. Dawson could feel the anxiety rising in his stomach, the anticipation of seeing Joey again. He calmly walked into the shady club with Shannon at his side, keeping his eye out for Joey or Pacey.

He saw them sitting in the corner of the bar, Joey laughing as Pacey animatedly told some story or other. It wasn't so much how they looked at each other, but how it made Dawson feel. It was like they were in their own world, never paying attention to the people they were surrounded by, never glancing in a particular direction. And Joey—wow. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen her look so amazing. She even looked happy sitting there with Pacey. Not something he wanted to think about.

He was ashamed of himself, though, for feeling this way. He loved Shannon. He honestly did. He had explained his relationship with Joey to Shannon long ago, and she had always been understanding and supportive. She had never once questioned his loyalty to her, and he felt guilty for questioning his loyalty now.

"Hey, you two." Jen yelled over the crowd.

Pacey turned to find the group approaching the bar. "Hey. Where's Andie and big Dave?" Jack answered as quietly as he could, "Couldn't make it. They had to head back this morning." Pacey nodded and unconsciously skimmed through the group and noticed Dawson staring carefully at Joey. He glanced at Shannon to see if she noticed the obvious, but Charlie was compromising Jen and Shannon's attention.

"What's up, Chuck?" Pacey called. He couldn't help but laugh every time he saw Charlie. He looked up at Pacey and shook his head. "Witter, you're here?" He walked up to Pacey and gave him a brief man-hug. "Where've you been? Boston hasn't been the same without you. I try to get Jen to go to Old Joe's with me, you know join in on all that fun, but she refuses."

                Pacey laughed at his friend, just as the bartender asked Charlie what he wanted to drink. Pacey turned back to Joey as she scanned the growing crowd. As she watched people dancing, she nudged Pacey's knee. "Capeside is quite the party town. Who knew?" She smiled at Pacey as he nodded in agreement. Not once did she turn towards the group. She leaned over the bar and asked Pacey if she could have his shot.

                "Um, I don't know if you'll want that—

Joey downed the shot before he could even finish his sentence.

"Or maybe you do."

Joey hailed the bartender and asked for another shot of whatever Pacey was drinking. She turned back to Pacey and shrugged. He just nodded.

 "So, Potter, feel like dancing?" Joey looked around at the others uneasily, but smiled at Pacey anyway. "Sure." Pacey picked up Joey's hand off the bar and led her onto the dance floor. Jack looked at the others in confusion. "Was that uncomfortable—just now. Um, did anyone else catch that?" Charlie shrugged and picked Jen up off the ground and practically carried her onto the dance floor, with her giggling all the way.

Shannon tapped Dawson on the shoulder. "Shall we?"

"Oh, uh, yeah. Lets go." She towed him onto the dance floor and planted herself right between the other couples.

"How're you holding up?"

"As well as expected, I guess. You?" She spoke in quiet tones, keeping close to Pacey's ear.

"Good—considering I get to enjoy your undivided attention tonight."

"Well, get used to it."

Pacey pulled Joey a little closer with every move they made. It happened almost instinctively. Feeling so close to Pacey at that moment, she rested her cheek lightly against his cheek.

"Thank you, Pacey."

"For what?"

"You."

They continued to sway slowly, and the adrenaline began running through their veins. Each movement caused a reaction within Pacey, forcing him to finally speak.

"Jo?" Pacey pulled away only far enough to look directly into her eyes.

"Yeah?"

"This feels so…right."

Joey kept Pacey's eye, but wasn't sure how to respond. Is that what she was feeling? Again, she rested her cheek against his and continued to hold him close.   

Shannon nuzzled Dawson's neck as they danced. Dawson however did very little to respond as he could not take his eyes of Joey. He could see the closeness of the two dancing—and she smiled at Pacey as if there were no other care in the world. Every time his view of Joey was obscured by Shannon, he would move to just the right angle in order to see her again. He felt desperate to talk to her, and continually tried to make some sort of eye contact with her, but she refused to take her eyes away from Pacey.

That was even more frustrating that Dawson could've imagined.

Mid-song, Dawson looked at Shannon and asked calmly, "Would you mind if I asked to cut in on Joey? I should really talk to her."

Shannon smiled her same warm smile and nodded. "Sure. I wanted to ask Jack over there to dance anyway." Dawson kissed her lightly on the lips and walked over to Pacey and Joey. He tapped Pacey's shoulder and asked politely, "Can I cut in?" Pacey looked back at Joey and an unspoken understanding passed between them. Pacey let go of Joey, and a sudden feeling of déjà vu struck him. He couldn't recall what the moment reminded him of, but he felt like he was letting go…not just physically, but…he didn't know what.

At the bar, Pacey took a quick shot and immediately asked for another. He turned, leaning his body against the bar, and faced the sea of dancing couples. The bartender handed him another shot and he instantly swallowed it. He searched for Joey and Dawson on the dance floor.

"How are you?"

Joey avoided eye contact. "Better, you?" Dawson looked in the direction she was so intently watching. "Not so good, Jo." He paused as she actually turned to look at him. He kept watching her closely. "I've been thinking about you every waking minute since the other night." She could see the fear in his eyes and knew she was reciprocating that same feeling in her own.

"Dawson, you're engaged. And I…I'm…"

He continued with his thoughts, "Being here, in Capeside, closer to you than I've been in a long time. Yet forced to stay away from you this entire trip. It's been terrible. I have to fight the urge to…Things are going through my head right now that I never anticipated…"

Joey felt even more uncomfortable than before. "Dawson, what I've been meaning to say is that I'm happy for you." Dawson watched her, confused at this sudden change in perspective from Joey. She quickly glanced at those around her, and spotted Jack and Shannon. She watched them dancing and tried to disconnect herself from the moment, but could not. "You're happier than I've seen you in…I don't even know how long. I'm just…I'm sorry I wasn't apart of it. This is a monumental time in your life, and I want to be supportive of you." After a beat, "I'm sorry, Dawson."

He stood still unsure if he had heard her correctly. Then he pulled her into a tight embrace, startling her. He whispered into her ear, and she could feel the warmth of his breath touch her skin. It mesmerized her.

"All I needed from you Jo, was your support."

Her heart fell with his words. "I know. I'm sorry." Dawson pulled back far enough to look into her eyes, showing the relief he felt at her words. Their eyes lingered and Joey couldn't help but feeling like it was slipping away: The moment, their friendship, everything. Any possibility of a future together was fading away with the rest of the night.

And that's when it finally happened. It was as if Joey lost all track of time and space. Maybe she really was mesmerized by their close proximity and she was suddenly caught in the moment. Or maybe she forgot where they were and whom they were near. But…

Joey kissed Dawson.

She kissed him with all the passion and vehemence she was feeling. She kissed him hard and long, searching for whatever feeling she knew was missing. 

Even as Pacey watched it, he couldn't grasp it. It seemed to occur in slow motion, as if torturing him with every second of the kiss. He saw the look on her face right before she kissed him. They had been standing still, as the rest of the crowd swayed back and forth to the drone of the music. Even from such a distance, he knew the expression on her face. He knew it. He had worn it himself, albeit for Joey.

He reached for another shot. He couldn't remember how many he'd had, but didn't really care. As he swallowed his final shot, he couldn't decipher if it was the alcohol or the spectacle he had just witnessed which burned the inside of him until it reached his center. If she had just said the words, he would've given it all up for her. All of it. But she hadn't. She wanted from Dawson what he wanted from her. Something he could never have again.

Pacey laughed loudly at himself, disrupting the people around him and generating nervous glances from his drunken mess. Did he really think something was happening between him and Joey again? Always the sucker, he thought, as he pushed open the entrance door to the bar, letting it slam shut behind him.

But it was Dawson who interrupted their sweet kiss. He pulled back from her, stunned. Without hesitation he pushed past her in complete confusion, causing her to spin around and watch him as he chased a hysterical Shannon out of the bar.

Joey sighed in disbelief. She could see Jack out of the corner of her eye, and looked at him long enough to see his disappointment. She turned back towards the entrance, and decided to make a run for it after Dawson. She didn't have any idea what she was doing. She wasn't sure if she had completely lost it, but she did know that Dawson was the key to her sanity right now.

Stepping into the chill of the night, she searched the darkness and spotted a shadowy figure running to the left of her. Reluctantly, she began chasing after Dawson, and realized the hard way that platforms and running don't mix. Joey was forced to stop when her ankles began to ache, and when she realized she would never reach him. This is ridiculous, she thought. She turned around and walked briskly back to the bar's parking lot and looked for Pacey's truck. It was already gone.

Miserable and tired, Joey walked into the bar expecting a backlash from her old friends. But she never saw Jen or Charlie. Only Jack. He walked up to her and she tried to stammer out something coherent, but found it impossible. His eyes spoke of the sorrow she could feel growing deep inside. Holding back the tears, she blurted. "What did I just do?"

"I better take you home, Joey."

She nodded pathetically as he put his arm around her shoulder and led her back outside to the car. She leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arm tightly around his waist, accepting the support he was offering. She was ready to go home.